1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for processing analog signals in a communication system, and more particularly, to an apparatus and method for processing analog signals in a communication system by selecting one of a plurality of analog signals according to addresses given to the apparatus for processing analog signals or by multiplexing the analog signals, converting the selected signal into a digital signal, and transmitting the digital signal via a serial bus, when there are a large number of analog signals whose states have to be checked.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to FIG. 1, a conventional apparatus that processes analog signals converts each monitoring analog signal 101 into digital data via an analog-to-digital (A/D) converter 103 and transmits the digital data upward via a parallel bus 105. As illustrated in FIG. 2, when there are a plurality of monitoring analog signals 201, a plurality of A/D converters 202 corresponding to the analog signals 201 to be collected are needed. Also, since a parallel bus 203 is subject to limited electrical driving strength, there is a restriction whereby only one parallel bus 203 is shared. Furthermore, since an address decoder 204 is present for controlling each A/D converter 202, each of digitally converted analog signals is transmitted to a next stage via a separate parallel bus 205. Accordingly, it is conventionally required to secure signal integrity for parallel data transmission lines, and add components related to parallel bus buffering when designing a circuit or a printed circuit board (PCB), thereby increasing the total number of components and the system size. Also, separate software must be developed in order to collect each analog signal.